LCTI honors Emerging Health Professionals program grads

Lehigh Career & Technical Institute and its education partners celebrated the Emerging Health Professionals program graduates Tuesday, May 24 during a sendoff at Lehigh Carbon Community College.

Lehigh Career & Technical Institute and its education partners celebrated the Emerging Health Professionals program graduates Tuesday, May 24 during a sendoff at Lehigh Carbon Community College.

SCHNECKSVILLE, Pa. | Lehigh Career & Technical Institute and its education partners on Tuesday celebrated this year’s graduates of the Emerging Health Professionals program.

Fifty seniors from nine Lehigh County high schools completed the prestigious year-long program, which exposes students to career and technical education and allows them to shadow health care professionals while they earn credits from either Lehigh Carbon Community College or Penn State Lehigh Valley.

During the ceremony at LCCC’s Community Services Center, Robert Gyory, a 2009 Emerging Health Professionals graduate who is now a fourth-year medical student, spoke about how the program prepared him for success at Penn State College of Medicine. Three members of the Class of 2016 — Thomas Buonanno, Melissa Hartman and Elton Veseli — shared their experiences, as well.

This year’s program graduates are Vina Aguirre, Alexis Anatalio, Haley Arner, Jose Avila, Shannon Avila, Haley Bergstrom, Kaleigh Bobeck, Chelsea Budde, Thomas Buonanno, Gabriela Campusano, Bridget Cerciello, Willow Childs, Emma Chisdak, Emma Conrey, Sanjay Deel, Elizabeth Dex, McKenzie Divers, Erin Donnelly, Colleen Graney, Melissa Hartman, Courtney Herr, Jason Hoch, Bailey Hutchinson, Carryn  Jurgens, Matthew Kermitz, Emilianna Kim, Taylor Kosman, Amber Labezius, Lucas Metzger, Ashley Mulcahy, Noelle Nalbandian, Victoria Nielsen, Alexis Papay, Christian Parker, Julia Rembalsky, Alexander Sabram, Hilda Sarraj, Brandon Segan, Taylor Slack, Taylor Snyder, Josephine Steidinger, Gina Tallarico, Phoebe Thomasco, Abigail Vecellio, Elton Veseli, Erin Ward, Ashley Weiss, Keely Welsh, Jessica Wyatt and Emily Zimmerer.


Ninety-two percent of the 2016 seniors scored at the advanced level on the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI) exam, earning a Pennsylvania Skills Certificate, and all of them scored at the competent or better.

Program instructors Donna Pavlovic and Kristin Applegate presented each senior with a certificate of completion, and singled out their top students for the following awards:

  • Academic Excellence Award: Bridget Cerciello & Lucas Metzler
  • Technical Excellence Award: Emma Conrey & Matthew Kermitz
  • Outstanding Leadership Award: Elton Veseli & Vina Aguirre
  • Perfect Attendance Award: Haley Bergstrom & McKenzie Divers
  • Outstanding Career & Technical Education Senior Award: Brandon Segan & Noelle Nalbandian

Country Meadows Retirement Communities Executive Director Anne Melick presented PENN HOSA Foundation Scholarships worth a combined $27,500 to the following seniors:

  • Vina Aguirre
  • Gabriella Campusano
  • Noelle Nalbandian
  • Alexis Papay
  • Julia Rembalsky
  • Taylor Slack
  • Josephine Steidinger
  • Erin Ward

In addition, the Upper Lehigh Lions Club Scholarship was presented to Gabriela Campusano.

Also on hand for the event were LCTI Executive Director Tim Rushton and Director of Curriculum & Instruction Lisa Greenawalt, LCCC President Ann Bieber, Penn State Lehigh Valley Chancellor Tina Richardson, St. Luke’s University Health Network Hospital Supervisor Rick Neas, KidsPeace Executive Vice President Michael Stack and several LVHN officials, including Surgery Education Center Coordinator Robert Ruhf, Educational Consultant Kerri Green and CRCST Sterile Processing Manager Nestor Hernandez, who served as the keynote speaker.

Learn more about how the Emerging Health Professionals program prepares LCTI students for successful careers and lifelong learning.

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